The Taisho fire

InuYasha

Tōga's reunion with InuYasha had been strangely anticlimactic. Whether because the great Inu no taishō had only become a human with part yōkai blood, or whether seven hundred years of life without a father had hardened the brash hanyou was yet to be determined. Perhaps, as well, that lying on a sofa quite killed the legend of the great dog general: Tōga could hardly stay seated, even with the high dose of pain killers that Haru had dosed him with in anticipation of the reunion that was to come.

Gwen observed from the sidelines as not only his second son, but a whole bunch of his children, grandchildren, as well as Sesshōmaru's brood surrounded him – even though the Ice King was nowhere in sight. All range of ages were represented, from a toddler – the newest addition to InuYasha's grandchildren – to probably sixty years old. Given what she knew, Gwen surmised she couldn't possibly trust any laugh lines to guess an approximate date of birth. InuYasha himself was younger than his full-blooded brother, but looked around fifty something.

What a mess.

They spoke a mixture of Spanish – with an accent – to Japanese, all voices jumbled and excited. Once more, Gwen felt like she was losing her footing; her whole world was tipping again with this new unconventional family. Tōga had such a line of descendants; were they expected to keep track of them all ? Some sported puppy ears, others didn't. But overall, none of them possessed the very distinctive stripes that adorned their sire's cheekbones. Perhaps, too, that the absence of demonic traits on Tōga's skin threw some of those half-demons off.

His golden eyes twinkled at one of InuYasha's stories, and she smiled from her spot in the corner of the room. Yes, he wasn't the Great Dog General he'd once been, but she had no doubt his charm would win over the insane amount of descendants that had massed around him.

"It is so strange," someone mused in English by her side. Gwen almost started – she'd been so engrossed in the contemplation of that lovely scene that she failed at hearing the young woman who'd approached her. Short white hair with a streak of red, wide eyes and an approachable smile caused her to reciprocate.

"One of the greatest yōkai turned humans ?" she sassed, looking into the new friendly face to assess the amount of yōkai blood that ran through her veins... and failing miserably. Bright eyes with an uncanny flicker of pink laughed back at her.

"No. My grandsire back from the dead. He was my sister's hero for so long, we lived for the tales of his great deeds, and now he's just...there."

Strangely, her lilts were more reminiscent of South America rather than the typical Japanese chopped accent.

"Yeah," she eventually nodded. "That ought to be weird."

Gwen couldn't help but feel a pang of regret for those she'd lost and had not returned. Her maternal grandmother and grandfather whom she'd never known, and most of all, her mother. Once more, she wondered if everyone ran through the wheel of reincarnation, or if those spirits of the earth earned a special treatment. Somehow, she was glad Tōga had found his way back to the living; her life would certainly be dull without him.

"Weird, yes. It is also a privilege to meet him."

Gwen processed what the youth just revealed to her. Grandsire. And given the shape of her eyes, she surmised she belonged to the elder brother rather than the youngest one.

"You're Sesshomaru-sama's daughter ?"

"Aye. I'm Towa."

Towa, right. Sesshomaru mentioned her on the jet.

"Gwen, nice to meet you."

The young woman returned her handshake with such a grip that Gwen winced.

"Sorry, I forget my strength sometimes. I would take you to Setsuna but my twin doesn't look too happy at the moment. Typical of her."